Kaspersky: We’re All Targets As Cyber Criminals Get Smarter Every Day

Security vendors are busy adding and upgrading defensive technologies into their products, but security experts say an end to the cat-and-mouse game with organized cyber criminals is nowhere in sight.

Strong and often complex business networks that support the delivery of malware and other attacks designed to steal credit card data, passwords and personal information are constantly building in strength, according to Kaspersky Lab malware experts and executives who spoke with reporters at the company’s Global Press Tour in Moscow. The company opened its doors to journalists, showcasing its new global headquarter facilities, which opened in March next to the Moscow River.

The cyber criminal ecosystem is constantly changing and growing more complex, said Dmitry Bestuzhev, head of Kaspersky Lab’s Latin America global research and analysis team. The work of carrying out attack campaigns is split up, beginning with malware writers who sell exploits to cybercriminals. Botnet owners lease out thousands of infected computers, while automated attack toolkits targeting some of the latest vulnerabilities are sold and supported with updates. Money mules also work to drain bank accounts by cashing out stolen debit cards. Once the money is collected it is laundered, Bestuzhev said.

“All of us are potential targets of cyber criminals,” Bestuzhev said. “If you own a device that is wired to connect to a network, you are a target.”